Aero-rig benefits?

snowleopard said:
The Aerorig is one solid assembly and the mast is of fairly conventional cross-section. The Aerorig is in 3 parts - a short pillar attached to the boat, a boom assembly pivoted on the pillar and a freely-rotating wing sitting on top of the boom. The mainsail pulls the wing to one side or the other to form an aerofoil leading edge. You can sail on just the mast of the Aerorig so it also serves as a storm sail (I have done 9 knots under mast).
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Thanks. Interesting. (Though presumably all after first sentence refers to Freewing, not Aerorig?)
 
I know one boat in Curacou that did a circumnavigation with and an aero rig and a member of this parish who had an aero ring and converted to a traditional for aft rig. I wouldn't buy an aero rig I prefer the fleixibility of sloops and ketches which we had.
 
KellysEye said:
I know one boat in Curacou that did a circumnavigation with and an aero rig and a member of this parish who had an aero ring and converted to a traditional for aft rig. I wouldn't buy an aero rig I prefer the fleixibility of sloops and ketches which we had.
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Personally I'd never go back but each to his own.
 
It has been said that less winches are needed
However, one still has to hoist the main & jib
One still has to put reefs in the sails, adjust leech tension ( a sail set off wind is set different to a sail set for windward regardless of rig)
In addition the lines etc have to be lead back to the cockpit & presumably need more blocks etc ( unless everything is mounted on the rig)
One cannot use an asymmetric sail or spinnaker so there is a potential speed loss downwind
I would also query the statement it is cheaper
The rigging on my boat cost £1000-00 to replace & i am sure the mast costs a lot less than a carbon spar with carbon boom etc. the boom has to be extremely strong to counter the upward forces so all in there is a lot of carbon & that is not cheap
The weight increase, whether at deck level or not, must be higher
I expect some insurance companies would fight shy of this rig simply due to lack of data

So i do not understand the assertion that less gear is needed & it is as cheap as a conventional rig
 
Sybarite said:
A test was carried out some years ago by a French magazine on two Bénéteau 42's, one with a conventional rig and the other with an aerorig.

A test of two Beneteau 42s7's differing only in the Aerorig on one corroborates the predicted performance advantage or the Aerorig. Even though the boat with the Aerorig had 15% less sail area, it performed 10% faster upwind and 30% faster off the wind in 10 to 20 knot winds. (http://www.barbara-ann.net/vpp_results.htm)


Carbospars got into difficulty when they botched the building of one rig. Instead of scrapping it, they added additional layers with the result that the rig weighed nearly twice its design weight, with a consequent adverse effect on performance. They did not survive the resulting legal issue.

Although the mast was more expensive there was a significant saving in the price of rigging and winches meaning that the final difference was not all that much.

Conceptually IMHO it is the ideal cruising rig especially regarding the simplification of downwind sailing : just square off the rig.

It's a pity it's not more widespread as volume would bring the unit price down.


Here's what the venerable member said 10 years ago:




from the horse\'s mouth...



i have a freewing which is just like an aerorig but the mast is a wing section and rotates independantly. that makes it a bit more efficient but most of the advantages are common:

gybing is easy as the jib acts as a damper, also no shrouds to hit so you can let it go right round & it doesn't stop with a crash.

when running you square the rig across the boat, fully efficient and no risk of gybe, when a squall gets up you just ease out, till it's right out over the bow if necessary, then haul in when the wind eases.

fully self tacking, short tack up a narrow channel by just turning the wheel

the biggest advantage, which i now couldn't live without, is the ability to reef by turning downwind, letting go the sheets and allowing the rig to weathercock, no more rounding up into a rising gale.
no risk of dismasting through rigging failure

much faster on a reach than conventional, slot effect remains as sails always sheeted flat.

stresses on the hull from the unstayed rig are actually less than on a conventional rig.

the down side is cost, it's a lot more expensive than a conventional rig though you do save a lot on deck gear, especially winches.

there is no possibility of running controls back to the cockpit because of the rotation so sail handling has to be done on deck.

as has been said, carbospars has gone belly up recently but you can still get the freewing (which is cheaper) see <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.freewingmasts.co.uk/>Freewing Masts – Creating Tomorrow Today</A>
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hello!
I am interested in buying a boat with a freewing mast! The information on the internet is limited. Could you help me with some questions?
 
konstantinos2 said:
hello!
I am interested in buying a boat with a freewing mast! The information on the internet is limited. Could you help me with some questions?
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Suspect it is limited because there is little current information. also the number of boats fitted with the rig seems very limited, mainly Kelsall catamarans from 20+ years ago.

What boat are you looking at and where is it located?
 
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